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Chapter 76: Operation Thinkable

The return back home was… quite overwhelming.

Kunou spearheaded the small group that went in to tackle me down to the floor and give a long-paced session of cuddling, with the young girls 'demanding' that I stopped going for unexpected trips without reason.

Something which, to a fair degree, wasn't completely true. After all it had been Lilith's idea to send me and Vali to that week of literal Hell and I wasn't sure that the elated red-haired woman would stop being so much… unpredictable.

The strange thing that still I couldn't make sense of was the way the former Queen of Hell had decided to drag me and Vali around as we left that unexplored region of the Underworld, incredibly giddy and amused by our reactions but also by… something else.

It had been the silver-haired teen that had noticed the strange happiness coming off from his grandmother, pointing out how she seemed far more 'annoying' than usual with this 'loving hold' of hers.

Yet the little adorable episode I had with Kunou, Koneko, Lith, and Ophis proved to be just the prelude of the welcome party I had to deal with.

As I had reached the living room of the house, I had been greeted by Kuroka, Akeno, Akua and… Mio.

The eldest of the Naruse siblings looked a little nervous as I went to notice that her clothes were… a little revealing. Nothing much different from her usual school-girl uniform-like dress, but I quickly saw that her sleeves had been rolled up and she was donning two finger-less gloves and a longer skirt. Then I also noticed that her upper shirt was eased upon her cleavage, giving a perfect glimpse of her-

Yep, now I could see why she would be embarrassed with that outfit. From the previous details, I could only think that Sapphire had helped her niece to get a proper outfit that could help during battles.

Her short skirt made it easy for an enemy to merely cause some distraction by pulling it up, causing the redhead to panic and mess up her guard in the process. The gloves were emitting some magic and I could recognize the runes displayed in a soft violet light as… 'Gravity'?

I guess those helped her to fully manifest the potential of Gravity and make use of it easier during fights. But looking back at that little revealing feature of her new outfit, I could only guess that it had been advised from someone else.

"You know, I think you should stop ogling Mio-tan, Hoi-kun, or else she might pass out from the attention~." The mirthful comment from Kuroka was more than enough to get me to realize that I had been indeed staring at the full-blushing girl and quickly looked away while I tried to make some appeasing hand-gestures to avoid giving the wrong impression.

And I soon remembered that the people I was trying to appear 'good' to were those that were already aware of it and the only reason why the Nekoshou had gone with that teasing line was to get me to give them some opening for something a little more serious.

I felt a pair of pale arms wrap up around my neck and then I felt a warm breath tingling at my exposed skin. My eyes widened as I turned around a little too late to see a pair of short canines sink onto my shoulder and start drawing some blood.

Chu~

Flinching at the action and the familiar noise, I expected some pain to be coupling with the uneasy situation and… moments of silence passes as I ended up realizing that I wasn't suffering at all from that bite.

Rather, I was feeling unhappy for that sudden sneak attack from the black-haired vampire. More time passed and I realized that the bite was prolonging beyond the usual time and I started to worry about it going to last for too long until the girl slowly moved away from my neck with a satisfied grin.

"It seems that it did work," Akua commented with a normal smile, the way the happiness was portrayed on her face looking more natural than before. Actually, I could see a relative easing of her former stance.

"Why didn't it hurt?" I asked quietly, getting a giggle from Akeno and I turned to the Himejima.

"Akua-chan decided to ask her sister, Moka-san, if there were other ways to drink blood from a human that wouldn't cause any major discomfort to the partner and… she told her about the longer but eased process."

The vampire nodded. "By limiting the strength and the length of the teeth, I can prolong the process for the sake of rendering it painless and less invasive for you," The vampire finished the explanation for the Fallen Angel hybrid, her red eyes fixed on my face. "So, how was it?"

I blinked at the query, still failing to understand how things could have changed so much with just a week of absence. I had been gone for a week and it seemed that it's been years since I saw them all the last time.

Still, I slowly nodded while flashing an twitching smile. "I suppose it was… nice of you to make it painless?"

She nodded at the reply. "I suppose you are still recovering from the return and the surprise, still you're welcome."

I blinked again, this time taking some time to notice that… Lilith, Vali and the others hadn't entered the living room. Actually, they weren't even in the same floor anymore.

I turned back to Kuroka. "Is there something else- something important that you wish to tell me?"

They all tensed up at my question, giving each other a glance or two before Akeno sighed and nodded.

"We hoped to share some words about our current situation," The young woman mentioned with a small smile. "Privately and without distractions."

I nodded, sporting a curious look as we all went to pick a seat by the couches with… Mio picking one my right side, Kuroka my left, while Akua and Akeno picked the couch opposite to ours.

It was the Nekoshou to speak this time.

"While we have already told you about our interest in keeping this open relationship, there has been a development with..." The cat-eared woman glanced to the side, where the red-haired Naruse was glancing at her hands, unwilling to deign anyone else a glance because of nervousness. "Mio-tan."

I looked at Kuroka. "What kind of development?"

"I-I asked if-" Mio gulped nervously and nodded before continuing. "If it would be possible to… join them in case I truly fell in love with you." Her hands shot up to cover her renewed blush, surprisingly enough her quick-paced reply managing to clearly reach my brain and…

Oh.

Oh cripes, you better handle that carefully.

'Why would Hoitsu need to be careful? If the girl wants to be one of his mates, I don't see problems with that-'

The issue is more about… the age. She might look like an adult but… she is just a year older than her sister and Maria is Fifteen.

'...That means that Mio is-'

Sixteen, maybe a few months older than Koneko at best.

"Isn't that a little… quick?" I inquired calmly. "I don't mean to sound rude or anything, but Mio-"

"She is still too young," Akeno interjected, getting a flinch from the redhead at the blunt reply. "We are aware of that… and that is why we told her that we wouldn't want her to join us now."

"As much as it would be fun to see her amusing reactions while trying to catch your attention," Kuroka mused quietly, eyes closing in thought. "I think it would be wrong for her to join up this serious relationship… without some years of experience and understanding first. I reckon that her age is a little off, but I think the biggest issue is that she isn't sure of what she is feeling around you."

I glanced at Akua, the vampire shrugging. "I think she should wait a little more. To see and understand what she wants out from you. Either platonic or romantic love."

Sighing at the shared negative about that proposal, I turned my attention at Mio and… I frowned as I noticed her shivering a little at the comments she just heard.

I wasn't completely sure how much time it has been since she had asked about that, maybe yesterday or the day before that, but I could see that the response were something that the girl hadn't truly expected to be this… blunt and incredibly well-detailed in their expositions.

I had my arm wrapped around her, the girl tensing at first at the sudden contact but then she started to relax as I started to caress her own arm to comfort her. "Now, now, why are you sad, Mio-chan?"

There was silence from her at first. Then she glanced up with a quick sniff and she let her head tilt onto my shoulder. "I… I don't want to- I didn't mean to sound like I-"

"Ohi, there is no need to be this much tense. I'm not going to hurt you, nor I think what you asked was truly wrong."

I felt the other three girls' stare on me, but I focused at the now-surprised Naruse. "W-What?"

"I mean, the girls are correct with their statements that you shouldn't be giving too much weight over this decision, to impose yourself to give an answer to it so soon it's… too hasty." I explained calmly and soothingly, trying to calm the girl down. "I can't say that I understand the struggle that you are going to, but I can see that it somehow puts you to the silly fact that I would get mad at hearing that you are partially thinking of being romantically-interested on me."

"And… isn't that the… case?" She inquired slowly, her red eyes once more staring up at mine. I smiled a little and sighed.

"Of course not, sweetie," I replied with an easy tone. "I can't be mad at you because of something you can't control yourself with. You aren't angry because I'm telling you 'no', aren't you?"

She blinked. "I'm just… a little annoyed. But I'm not angry or- or anything like that," Mio explained with less tension in her tone. "I understand that loving someone like that is a big step and… I just don't know what to do about it."

"Did you tell this to your Aunt?" I would have asked if she had sought advice from her sister too, but considering the perverted nature behind the half-succubus' attraction directed at me, I sure was aware that the redhead hadn't gone for that route… yet.

"I tried to," She mentioned with a minor flinch. "She doesn't know it's you and… she said that I should just take you and..."

I blinked. "And?"

Her blush intensified and then… the girl concluded. "I should have 'taken you and kissed you without hesitation'- from there, if I liked it or not, I would know if I loved you as a friend or as a… lover."

There was more awkward silence and the redhead tried to hide away from the giggles and amused snorts coming from the other girls.

Meanwhile, my brain was slowly coming to realize that while Sapphire was seemingly good with life-experience advice and fighting preps, she was dumb as rock regarding love-related situations.

Having had just a relationship with a promiscuous Proto-Angel, I couldn't help but see why her sense of romantic feelings would be this much messed up.

And I thought that she was the sanest of the Morningstar family.

I sighed and nodded. "I guess I can see the issue with that and… I will give you a single advice about love."

Mio perked up away from her 'defensive posture'. "A-And that is?"

"Love can be instantaneous but it can be slow-paced," I said with a tired tone as I had yet to catch some rest since yesterday's lone nap. "It's not something you can study and understand without truly feeling it and, when you will find it, you will know it immediately if it is love or not."

The girl blinked at the explanation I gave her and… she nodded. "I see… so I should wait and… see if this is love or not?" She suggested, getting a nod out of me.

"That is the general plan, yes," I smiled as I caressed her head and hair a little.

"This is your life, Mio, you may find some difficult choices in front of you, some about yourself or those around you, but that is the beauty of life, the sense of completion at finding yourself with your own strength and desire," I paused for a moment and nodded. "You can also ask for support and help from time to time, but the choices that can change your life are generally up to you and it's best for you and only you to see which one is… better for yourself."

She smiled and melted a little more in the half-hug. "I… I will think about it." The girl resolved. "I guess that I will make sure that I will be careful in deciding about this and… I hope you will be waiting for me if-"

"I don't plan to go anywhere, Mio-chan," I snuggled my cheek on her hair. "And I will wait for your response whatever amount of time you need to decide."

She giggled and sighed. "Thank you… for being there."

I nodded. "No, thank you and-" I turned to glance at the other women, all looking at the scene with positive expressions. "Thank you three for bringing this up to attention."

They collectively nodded and I sighed as I continued to hug the smiling girl for a little while.

What a wholesome day indeed.

Grayfia POV – A few moments later...

This was the worst nightmare possible.

Or at least that was what Grayfia could say about the annoying bastard trying to irritate her with his tirades of the past glory of their family and his foul choice of marrying Sirzechs.

Euclid turned out to be as abrasive as she had remembered him from during the Rebellion against the previous Maous, the pompous prick of a sibling behaving as arrogant as she had last seen him be during their last skirmish in the Underworld

The maid to the Gremory clan was unsure if Lady Lilith had been aware of their frictions and had ignored the issue or if the woman had been unaware of it all and was discovering of this now.

The only thing that the Lucifuge was sure of was that Rizevim was enjoying the spectacle with an eye-to-eye grin that threatened to split his face in half between chuckles.

Hopefully, said split would be as gruesome as possible with enough blood being displayed for the sake of giving her satisfaction over the infuriating scene unfolding with the upstart of a brother.

A few more minutes of quiet chatting passed, her husband engaging in discussions with Azazel and Michael.

The room had been turned in a large meeting ground for the representatives of the Three Factions of the Christian Pantheon and everyone was just waiting for their last guest.

A soft knock interrupted the chatting as the final member of this reunion arrived.

Hoitsu peeked his head before truly entering inside the room, nodding and greeting politely all over the place while also gracing smiles to those he was close to, something that Grayfia received herself and returned with a polite smirk, before being assaulted by a certain naive Angel.

"G-Gabi-"

"Big brother, it's been so long!" The blonde squealed happily, interrupting the young man as she glomped him mercilessly and without a sign of letting go of the poor boy.

Lilith giggled at the sight, while Michael tried in vain to get his sister to back away from the second observer of this meeting, the first one being the quiet Vali as the boy looked at the scene with a subdued but mirthful glance.

Just like it had been back at the mansion, Grayfia reckoned as she was happily rewarded with a silent Euclid.

Her young sibling was glancing with mixed emotions at Hoitsu, having already revealed how miffed he was about having a 'rival' to his sister's affections.

Of course there wasn't any rivalry of sort, especially since the maid preferred the young man to her biological brother. Easier to manage, to care for and didn't seem to latch at her like a perverted parasite.

After some more attempts to get the Angel to stand away from the poor human, Hoitsu proceeded to get onto the remaining seat as the proper meeting finally began.

Azazel took the lead by revealing the latest development regarding the block of Gods trying to form a coalition against the Christian Pantheon and their allies, giving out info about the current number of men deployed by their enemies.

The number itself was worrying, but not enough to compare with Hell's legions and the dormant armies of the Shinto, Hindu and Taoism.

While the Hindu faction was fractured between the various belligerent deities, the God of Destruction Shiva had been the first of numerous divine beings deciding to not join with the aggressive block, preferring the status quo rather than a world-ending war.

A thought that was shared by the Gods like the Celtic Lugh and the Mongol Tengri himself, which turned in a powerful statement since the latter has a stern look over his worshipers and mankind as a whole.

Many were still in the process of joining for the 'Peace-driven' alliance, but the rallying was starting to cause some friction over the reasoning behind the existence of the group.

It was meant to be a peace-keeping force, but with the concentration of so many deities, it was clear that war was just brewing with the intensification of skirmishes all over the world.

Until now those battles had been brief encounters that left no sign of ever happening, only the leaders knowing what was going on, and yet it was a matter of time for things to escalate unless something was done to avoid it all.

After Azazel had concluded his speech, it was Sirzech's turn.

Her husband started by detailing the current investigations happening in Hell's society as some individuals have been discovered to hold some unpleasant allegiances outside the current government.

A large majority had pledged support for Qlippoth, something that had irked the Satans as it meant that there was still a noticeable group of denizens that supported the old leadership and… that meant that Rizevim could have easily sparked a rebellion.

Something that was subtly mentioned by the leader of the Maous and then was revealed bluntly by a comment coming from Lucifer's son in a giddy tone, enough to cause some nervousness across the room until his mother came and bashed his skull once.

Just enough to keep him quiet for a while.

The intervention then moved to the current security system over Trihexa, numerous details left untold during the presentation as with the presence of Qlippoth's leaders it was best to keep the current state of things about the Beast a secret.

Papers were passed with Heaven, Lilith and Grigori learning more about it.

Then it was Michael's turn to talk and the Archangel decided to be honest with the current situation in Heaven.

Their own investigation, both in the Kingdom and within the Church, had turned up numerous security problems about the overall integrity of their territories.

Heaven had some sections that could be used to invade, something that only a handful of traitorous Angels had been aware of and had been able to maintain their purity only thanks to an exception within the rules of the 'Falling' which had formed after God's death.

These entrance points had been properly sealed and guarded by numerous Angelic Guards while their focus turned on Earth and… things turned blurry.

From corruption to high treason, the Holy See's hierarchy had been filled with criminals and traitors, all of them partaking in surviving thanks to the cracks present in the over-stretched eyes from Heaven.

Some cardinals had to be sacked at once the moment their sins were revealed and a proper reshuffle was applied upon the current administration for the sake of having a completely-strong front to display to the other members of the group.

The depiction was helpful as it did show that even Heaven had suffered some major blows after the Great War, excluding God's death, but it also highlighted the fact that corruption was everywhere and people were flexible to sell sensible secrets out for money.

The two cases proving to be enough of a strong point for Azazel to point out the little purge he had been forced to commit for the sake of limiting the damage caused by Kokabiel.

While none of the rebellious Fallen Angels had pledged their allegiance or a connection to the man in particular, many had started the revolt during the time the war-hawk had attacked Kuoh Town.

Something that was good to know about and that confirmed that the Pantheon's internal stability has been fully reached just a few days ago.

It was clear that caution was still more than needed in these trying times and that it was something to extend to the other alliance's leaders for the sake of avoiding any sneak attacks from Indra and his clique of Gods.

Michael's turn was then diverted to describe some issues regarding the diaspora of Exorcists towards Grigori, asking for Azazel to at least turn over the worst criminals out for the sake of integrity and inner safety.

A request that had initially not sit well with the Governor General, but then the man had agreed to make some proper screening and send out any 'crazy maniacs' that had gotten inside the organization, reminiscing about a curious case happening in Kuoh a month or two earlier, glancing at a silent Hoitsu as he described generally what had happened in the situation.

Grayfia was smart enough to pick up that the 'little intruder' that had 'shown Azazel the extent of the crime committed by the garrison' was the one and only human in the room.

Could it have been his first unofficial mission? Of that the maid wasn't completely sure of, but she merely accepted the development as it was granted.

Finally, the Archangel went on to discuss about the danger presented by Azrael and the full extension of his power. Something powerful and incredibly harmful even to normal Deities, but easy to counter with proper seals and mighty magical spells to subdue him.

The Angel of Death was indeed nigh-impossible to kill, the role bestowed by God and the souls contained in that abomination being more than enough to be the greatest of threats for everyone in that room to face.

The Maous and Grigori's representatives started to plan out anything that could have worked to face the immensely-difficult task of capturing the rebellious entity.

Something that took a while to find a determined response, but then someone else decided to butt in. Lady Lilith looked fairly certain of how Azazel was supposed to be handled, even mentioning that given enough consideration it could actually be killed by someone within this room.

The revelation had struck shock from the majority of the room and soon the red-haired woman decided to explain how she was so sure of this certainty.

The lady was clever in pointing out that Azrael had been weakened at the battle of Ama-no-uki-hashi, the wounds inflicted having put him to a point where his body would be far too unstable to further engage in any fight against someone strong enough to break his hold over the souls.

While Michael and Gabriel were sure that Azrael was invincible and immortal, Lady Lilith proved them wrong by divulging something that Lucifer had told her after the first encounter with the 'sad one'.

Even though there was a degree of immensity upon the role bestowed by God to the Angel of Death, the Angel itself required a material manifestation to continue to exist. The very limit that was imposed to Azrael was the one created by his sturdy construction within the material world, his artificial soul being unable to last beyond the expiration date of his body.

An important development because it gave them the clear flaw within the figure, while also offering them a chance of properly end him up.

Yet there was also something that Lilith mentioned but didn't expand upon. Azrael's body was meant to last some Earth-shattering damage before showing some cracks and the only ones that could have really made a difference against him were those that either had enough magical prowess to vaporize him or… those with the 'Power of Destruction'.

Only her husband could have managed to get close enough to keep up with the monster while also destroying it. A process that would require immense concentration and power, something that would have been possible only if a strong group like the other Mahous and others joined up the fight.

Right as this assumption was given to be thought of, Hoitsu decided to stand up with a determined expression.

"I would like to volunteer myself and…" He glanced at his long-lasting partner in Grigori. "Vali for the task."

There was some silence at first, with many frowning at the sudden declaration and Grayfia starting to think that something had made her surrogate otouto a little insane for saying such a ludicrous thing.

Yet Lilith seemed to evaluate the offer before shaking her head. "You two aren't strong enough."

"We can use the-"

"You can't." The former Queen interjected with a calm sigh. "I understand where you are trying to go with that statement, sonny, but you are failing to see how the 'timing and effort' required for that wouldn't be conceded by someone as brutally fast as Azrael is. Your proposal is denied."

He fell on his chair with a shocked expression, eyes going wide at that sudden dismissal but he didn't comment further after that. But the red-haired woman decided to assure him with something that was going to happen very soon, an even planned by Sairaorg.

"But you can display that when the Bael Tournament will happen," The Lady replied happily. "The one which you promised little Sai to fight against him."

The young man blinked at that statement, part of the maid hoping that he had been informed beforehand rather than receiving this news now of all times. It had been advertised for a while in Hell and, while the publicity hadn't reached out to the real world within the proper channels, the Lucifuge had been sure that the human had been at least conscious that something big would happen in two days from now.

"A… tournament?" He asked with a frown. "I thought it was going to be a spar."

Lilith giggled but nodded. "It was meant to be like that but… that prude Zekram decided to make it a tournament," She explained quietly. "I think it's because he hope to get you to show a little more than just what one would get from a spar."

A thud was heard across the room as the youth dropped his head onto the table. "Why can't I get some peace?"

Another giggle, the former Queen of Hell smiled widely. "That is because you are an unlucky fellow with rather the unique display of powers and attitude."

Surprisingly, the response fit well with the overall endearing factors that made Hoitsu quite the interesting character to meet and know about.

The young man was a gold-mine of strange adventures and his generally-cheerful outlook of things, his strive to do bring righteousness to the world was incredibly refreshing after the last few centuries of normal activities on Earth.

Still, while the discussion proceeded to enter towards the final bits of its existence and the meeting was close to wrap up, Grayfia stopped to think about the tournament itself.

Rias had been nervous to learn that participating would put her fragile reputation at stake as she would have to prove herself before Hell's people as a whole. Something that was as nerve-wracking as dangerous for someone in her situation.

Her sister-in-law was aware of it all, she was panicking about it every day until it happens and… she still wanted to take part of it for the sake of recovering some of the honor she had lost a while ago.

A difficult predicament that had put Sirzechs on the edge, especially at the prospect that his sister sought to find forgiveness from Hoitsu, an effort that even Grayfia felt the need to insist to have the girl to deter from.

It was a risky attempt that could seriously backfire on the hopeful redhead, something that she truly didn't need to experience, the couple unsure if the heiress would have been able to endure another defeat on that department.

The maid sighed as she was brought back by the nagging from Euclid, the moron of a sibling once again trying to get her to snap and strangle him up for being such an infuriating fool. Maybe she should have seriously thrown him in the oubliette when she had the chance to do that.

What a regretful pity.

AN

Mio's situation is brought to attention and things are being planned.

Next time? Surely a lemon. But who should be the one to go for Hoitsu?

Can I pick? Can I pick?

...Really?

Yes!

Sigh, the choice is either Akua or Akeno-

Yes!

I didn't finish-

YES~!

...Really?

Yep.

Dammit.

Future milestone 1: 1024 Followers and Favorite.

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REVIEW Q&A!

SkullWolfSteam: The perspective is unchanged. It was still Hoitsu, his real name is now to be 'Tommy' or 'Tommaso' (Which is the Italian for Thomas).

StraxyX:
About the first review: I don't think you can pull a 'Johnny Depp' from Nightmare on Elm Street;
About the second review: I advise asking to the poor fools that have read 'My Immortal', I heard they have plenty of that;
About the third review: Everything is funnier when you have someone else to talk to. xD